JLU and Batman Beyond to (proper) DVD

I was expecting to hear exactly this (I was expecting those same wimpy extras, too, unfortunately) as soon as the last Batman: TAS set came out (yesterday). Excellent news.

Some real winners commenting on that site, though.

Being a huge fan of the original Batman: TAS (own the first three volumes, will be picking up the fourth very soon), is Batman Beyond a must-own? I do own BATMAN BEYOND: RETURN OF THE JOKER, and I loved that, too, but is it a good indication of the series' style and tone? I never got around to watching the series when it originally aired on TV, unlike TAS.

The Batman Beyond movie was where the show finally came together. Before that (as in, Season 1), it's kinda scattershot. The pilot works well, and as I've mentioned in another thread, there's moments of brilliance here and there (in particular, all things Inque and Meltdown), but all that's countered by a lot of villain rehashing (the great Mr. Freeze episode aside), and some bland storytelling.

Still, the show never sinks too low on the dignity scale, and it remains extremely watchable. I'd say it's worth it.

So, after this they're going to finish up seasons 3 of JLU and Teen Titans, right?

Or do they have to run through the rest of Naruto first?

Man, fuck Naruto.

Fuck Naruto, indeed.

Damn good news!

Great news. I've never seen that much of Batman Beyond, and having just plowed through all the episodes of JLU in less than a week, I really want to see the first two seasons.

The first season of Justice League is actually fairly weak. There are some high points, yes, but overall it's probably the weakest show the team has produced. It's not bad, but it's just not particularly great. The show hit its stride in the second season, when Cartoon Network started showing it in wide screen, full-hour episodes.

While I overall agree with your (complete) statement, I'd say only the first HALF of S1 is weak. Hell, the three-part opener isn't even something I'm looking forward to revisiting. It got to be so ho-hum, though, that I stopped watching it (to be fair, I don't watch any television airings anymore). It wasn't until downloading all the JL 'toons a few months ago (hearing how great the other seasons were) that I discovered how excellent most of the second half of S1 really is. "The Savage Time" is quite an epic season capper. "Legends" is a really wonderful bit of nostalgia mixed with some real heart. And you've gotta love the way an imprisoned Batman psychologically takes on a host of villany in "Injustice For All".

But, again, S2 is where things really start to shine and we get to see the show's potential along with the first glimpses of a larger mythology not as evident in animation since Gargoyles. Animated continuity is a wonder to behold, and they really nail it in S3.

As for Batman Beyond, Crow pretty much has it pegged, but I'd say if anyone is looking for the tone of Batman: TAS, they will be let down. It was far more kid-friendly (not the unedited movie, of course), and really only had a few "must-see" episodes. Other than what Crow mentions, "The Call" (from S2) is the only stand-out story. It's a great 2-part tale about Terry being asked to join the Beyond iteration of the Justice League, and has the greatest bit of business in the series (with Bruce's instructions to Terry at the end of part one). Justice League actually re-visits this world in a bit of well-done ret-con (is that accurate when dealing with this type of timeline?), but otherwise most people wouldn't be missing much (I'm sad to say) if they skipped Beyond altogether. I'm still buying it, though.


Keep in mind after skimming (if that) all that text I just laid out that I was actually a Marvel kid.

Thanks for the feedback, guys. I'll likely be picking up Batman Beyond on DVD if only for its connection to TAS. Speaking of which, what I really liked about RETURN OF THE JOKER was the mentor relationship established between the older, wiser Bruce Wayne and Terry McGinnis. I felt a genuine, almost brotherly, deepening bond between the two. Is this relationship explored in the series itself, and does it have merit?

Explored pretty well, actually, but what you saw in the movie was pretty much close to the full realization of its potential. JL has a season capper (S4, or S1 of JLU, if you prefer) that sheds some real light on things, but contains a huge revelation that is probably best experienced if you've seen at least a good portion of BB.